This Week in DVD & Blu-ray is a column that compiles all the latest info regarding new DVD and Blu-ray releases, sales, and exclusive deals from stores including Target, Best Buy and Fry’s.

Please don’t take the commentary on the movies and TV shows too seriously, as they’re meant not to be reviews but rather previews that include the general thoughts and ramblings of a twice-committed DVD addict. The categories represent solely the author’s intentions towards the films at hand, and are in no way meant to be a reflection on what he thinks other people should rent or buy. So if he ends up putting a movie you like in the “Skip it” section without having seen it, please keep in mind that the time you could spend leaving a spiteful but ultimately futile comment could instead be used for more pleasant things in life. Like buying DVDs.

KNOWING For my money, an interesting failure will always hold more value than a bland success. That’s why I’m recommending Knowing; not because it’s a good movie (it’s not), but because it’s ambitious, compelling, and occasionally thought-provoking, even if it never forms a fully satisfying, cohesive whole. A lot has been made out of the film’s religious themes, with debates arising over whether the film is actually a veiled propaganda piece in favor of Christianity, or alternatively, if it’s promoting science over religion. I believe neither of those is accurate; instead, the film is presenting its own hypothetical theory about the origins of our existence, combining elements of modern scientific theories and biblical symbolism as a way of showing that it is possible for both sides of the debate to coexist. The “disaster movie” premise is merely a base, used as a means to communicate and expand on these themes. Naturally, this irritated many viewers, since people don’t like paying for one thing and then getting something else entirely. It also doesn’t help that the film fails to explore those themes in the most coherent of ways. Regardless, I found myself elated to discover that the film was at least attempting to be something much more than your standard “disaster movie” fare. It still hits those beats, granted, but it’s everything else the film has to offer that’s kept me talking about it. Unfortunately, this also includes Nicolas Cage‘s hammy acting, which does a damn good job of holding the movie back and making sure it remains firmly in B-movie territory.Blu-ray? Yes.Notable Extras: DVD & Blu-ray – Audio commentary with director Alex Proyas, and two featurettes (“Knowing All: The Making of a Futuristic Thriller”, “Visions of the Apocalypse”).

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MTV has the first trailer for David Goyer’s upcoming supernatural thriller The Unborn. Looks a bit creepy but typical. Goyer may have been involved with crafting the stories for Batman Begins and The Dark Knight, but his directorial work (Blade: Trinity, The Invisible) has yet to impress me. Watch the trailer below and tell me what you think in the comments. Official Plot Synopsis: “A young woman is pulled into a world of nightmares when a demonic spirit haunts her and threatens everyone she loves. Starring Odette Yustman, Meagan Good, Cam Gigandet and Gary Oldman, The Unborn is a thrilling tale of one woman’s survival as she fights a family curse and struggles to shut a doorway from beyond our world that has been pried open by someone who was never born.”

Watch the trailer in High Definition on MTV. The Unborn hits theaters on January 9th 2009.